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We talk openly about emotional and mental health.

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Supporting Perinatal Anxiety Jun 04, 2024

 I know from firsthand experience, anxiety in pregnancy is awful.

  • Constantly feeling on edge.
  • A sense of doom, that something is just about to go badly wrong.
  • Intrusive thoughts about there being something wrong with your or your baby.
  • Crying ALL THE TIME!
  • And not understanding why because...
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What is medical gaslighting, and how does it show up in maternity care? birth trauma gaslight gaslighting maternity care medical gaslighting May 15, 2024

The term gaslight comes from the 1944 film of the same title, whereby the main character seeks to have his wife committed to an asylum.

He tampers with the gaslight, making it flicker and then denies that he sees this, making his wife question first her senses and then her sanity. This is just...

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International Day of the Midwife 2024! May 10, 2024

Last weekend was International day of the Midwife.

I absolutely want to celebrate, applaud and recognise excellent midwifery care that supports women to have safe, satisfying, and empowered births, BUT too often what is being practiced in Western maternity is Obstetric Nursing.

This is a world...

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What's your flow state? And how do you get there? Apr 23, 2024

I was grateful to receive some new books for my birthday recently.

One I have been particularly enjoying is ‘Stolen Focus: why you can’t pay attention’ by Johann Hari, Author of Lost Connections another favourite book about the causes of depression.

I can confidently recommend...

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Polarising birth Feb 29, 2024

Last week Guardian journalist Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett wrote her opinion piece with the subheading: NHS midwifery is in crisis and unmedicated birth in vogue, but doing it at home without medical support is simply dangerous.’

She goes on to denigrate the usefulness of hypnobirthing as...

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The cult of physiological birth ā€“ Part 1 #cultofnaturalbirth #birthtrauma #traumaticbirth #midwivesunderpressure Feb 13, 2024

The ideology of normal birth has been implicated in the avoidable deaths of mothers & babies again.

It was upsetting to watch the Panorama documentary last week ‘Midwives Under Pressure’. My heart goes out to the parents whose babies tragically died at Gloucester birthing unit.

...

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Birth trauma shame birth trauma birth trauma recovery birth trauma shame Nov 02, 2023

Shame is often experienced by parents who had a traumatic birth.

Shame arises out of a perception that we are wrong, unlovable, bad or unacceptable in some way. 

Sadly, it’s all to obvious why modern, medicalized birth is so often shaming of parents.

Experiencing birth as a series of...

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Before you listening ... try this! free resources listening therapy Oct 05, 2023

A few weeks ago I asked a group of perinatal professionals what the core, component parts to good listening are, how do we ensure that people feel heard essentially?

We discussed the importance of reflective listening, compassion and attention.

We...

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4 Reasons the world needs more doulas right now. Sep 13, 2023

There has never been a greater need for more doulas than now. In fact market experts predict that the doula and birth coaching market will grow by 6.2% in the US next year and it will double in the next 10 years.

  1. Traditional, woman centred midwifery, that supports parents birth choices and...
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How to find new clients when you are new to business birth professional new business starting business Nov 11, 2022

This week I have spoken to two different TBR Practitioners who are both relatively new to business but wanted to know how to attract more clients and get their business off the ground and flying high. 

*DISCLAIMER* I am not a marketing guru. 

I am someone who in my first year of flying...

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5 Simple ways to support parents in the early days of grief and loss and some things to avoidā€¦. #babyloss #blaw22 #griefjourney #pregnancyloss Oct 13, 2022

5 Simple ways to support parents in the early days of grief and loss and some things to avoid….

One of the most difficult things about grieving the death of a baby or pregnancy is the lack of validation and acknowledgement available from professionals, friends, family and society at...

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Baby Loss Awareness Week 2022 #babyloss #blaw #blaw22 #pregnancyloss Oct 09, 2022

Today is the first day of Baby Loss Awareness Week 2022.

This event has been running for 20 years now and has sought not just to bring awareness to the tragic issue of baby loss but also to increase awareness about the importance of acknowledging that traumatic event when it happens.

...

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